Plant room
ventilation
Paul Walker looks at the ventilation
provisions for boiler houses and plant rooms
in accordance with British Standard 6644
Commercial/non-domestic boilers are
often installed in purpose designed and
built boiler houses/plant rooms, which
serve one or more buildings and which
usually contain other services for the
building concerned.
This article reviews the ventilation
provisions for boiler houses/plant rooms
in accordance with British Standard
(BS) 6644: 2005 Specification for
installation of gas-fired hot water boilers
of rated inputs between 70kW (net) and
1.8MW (net) (2nd and 3rd family gases).
Note: Additional guidance for boiler
houses/plant rooms ventilation and
that of a ‘space’ can also be found in
an Institution of Gas Engineers and
Managers (IGEM) publication,
IGE/UP/10 Part 1 (Edition 2)
Installation of gas appliances in
industrial and commercial premises.
Part 1. Flued appliances.
The person(s) responsible for designing
the installation should have the necessary
knowledge and understanding of the
standards and regulations that apply to
ensure any plans provided produce a
safe and satisfactory installation.
Gas operatives installing, commissioning
and maintaining gas installations in
non-domestic premises need to be
competent in the work activity that they
are engaged in and registered with CORGI.
Many gas operatives and installing
business reading this article on boiler
houses/plant rooms ventilation will be
aware of various ventilation scenarios
where ventilation requirements are not
achievable, neither have they had much
consideration in design or its application.
Ventilation provisions, as with any other
aspect of the installation, can not be
designed in isolation as the type of boiler,
its burner assembly (i.e. atmospheric,
forced draught, pre-mix, dual fuel, etc.),
the controls being utilised (on/off, high
low, modulating), the manufacturer’s
instructions etc, should all be considered
to ensure that any particular requirements
for the equipment being installed has
been accounted for (cooling air as well as
for combustion).
The boiler installation needs to be
designed so that it does not cause
adjacent spaces to exceed their design
temperature during operation of the
boiler’s. The boiler needs to be sited on
floors/walls capable of withstanding
temperatures of at least 650C and be
capable of supporting the weight of
boilers and ancillary controls when filled
with water.
Air supply to the boiler house/plant
room needs to ensure that maximum
temperatures within the boiler house/plant
room are limited to:
• 250C at floor level (100mm above
floor level)
• 320C at mid level (1.5 m above
floor level)
• 400C at ceiling level (100 mm below
ceiling level).
Where boiler/plant is likely to be used
throughout the summer months at or near
maximum capacity it may be necessary to
install additional ventilation, to that
required for combustion purposes, to
achieve the temperatures specified above.
The ventilation provisions can be
afforded by one or more of the following:
1. Air to be supplied by one or more
low level free air vents and discharged
by one or more free air vents at high
level.
2. Air to be supplied by a fan via one or
more low level free air vents and
discharged naturally at high level (fan
needs to be interlocked to boiler with a
proving device).
continued on next page >
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Note: Under no circumstances should Table 1: Cooling air for boiler NOT fitted with Draught Diverter
air be supplied naturally at low level
with extraction being provided by Cooling air Temperature 0C Airflow per kW net heat input m3/sec
means of a fan at high level, as this
Low Level 15 318 x 10 -4
can create negative pressures in the
boiler house/plant room leading to High Level 40 3.47 x 10 -4
flue reversal problems.

3. Air to be supplied by a fan via one or Table 2: Cooling air for boiler fitted with Draught Diverter
more low level free air vents and
discharged by means of a second fan Cooling air Temperature 0C Airflow per kW net heat input m3/sec
at high level (fans need to be
Low Level 15 3.79 x 10 -4
interlocked to boiler with a proving
device to each fan). Additionally, fans Outlet (via Draught 32 1.90 x 10 -4
need to be selected and controlled so
Diverter
as not to cause a negative pressure in Outlet (High Level) 40 2.07 x 10 -4
the boiler house/plant room, relative to
outside atmosphere. Natural ventilation requires sufficient free to enter and exit the boiler/plant room for
area ventilation provided at high and low boilers fitted with and without draught
4. Where balanced compartment level to allow combustion and cooling air diverters as detailed in Tables 1 and 2.
installations are installed, air is supplied
and discharged by means of purpose
designed flueing and ventilation Table 3: Natural ventilation for a boiler NOT fitted with a
Draught Diverter
system based on high and low
permanent openings, located
Volume Flow Calculated open Rounded up open area
immediately below the flue outlet
m3/sec/ kW area vent of vent
(specialist advice should be sought).

Low level
All inlet and extract fans should be fitted
with automatic controls causing boiler Combustion air 3.89 x 10 -4
shut down in the event of either individual
or total fan failure. Cooling air 3.18 x 10 -4
The ventilation provisions need to Low level Total 7.07 x 10 -4 3.54 cm2/kWnet heat input 3.5 cm2/kWnet heat input
ensure that the temperature of the boiler
house/plant room meets the requirements
of BS 6644 and shall not be less than High Level
2 cm2 free area per kW of the net heat
input at both high and low level. Combustion air 0
The high and low level ventilation
Cooling air 3.34 x 10 -4
should be direct to outside air on the
same wall. The vertical distance between High Level Total 3.47 x 10 -4 1.74 cm2/kWnet heat input 2 cm2/kWnet heat input
high and low level ventilation should be as
great as possible to achieve convection
airflow.
When calculating ventilation
requirements we must take into account
whether or not the boiler has a draught
diverter fitted. 50% of air leaves through
the draught diverter at mid level
temperature of 320C and 50% of high level
temperature of 400C, therefore “mean” exit
temp is 360C. This includes 1% for heat
emitted from ancillary pumps, pipework
etc fitted within the boiler house/plant
room.

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Table 4: Natural ventilation for a boiler fitted with a Draught Diverter Mechanical ventilation.
From calculations in Table 3. Table 5 gives
Volume Flow Calculated open Rounded up open area the mechanical ventilation flow rates
m3/sec/ kW area vent of vent required to supply boiler/plant room
combustion air and cooling air and
Low level extracting heated cooling air from the
boiler/plant room. When using extraction
Combustion air 3.89 x 10 -4
fans it’s important not to create a negative
Cooling air 3.79 x 10 -4 pressure in the boiler/plant room in
relationship to the outside pressure.
Low level Total 7.68 x 10 -4 3.84 cm2/kW net heat input 4 cm2/kW net heat input In order to ensure a correct balance
between inlet and extract air flow the
differences have been specified in column
High Level e of Table 5. This is specified as a
Combustion air 0 normative requirement in BS 6644:2005.
All figures and calculations have
Cooling air 2.07 x 10 -4 assumed CO2 in the flue gases is 8.5%
High Level Total 1.03 cm2/kW net heat input 1 cm2/kW net heat input then air requirement for one volume of
2.07 x 10 -4
gas will be 13.2 volumes.
NOTE: 50% of the cooling air exits via the draught diverter. 1% for heat emitted from ancillary
pipework and pumps within the boiler
house/plant room. This is calculated on
Ventilation Free Opening for Low level free opening is taken from the net heat input of the boilers
boilers with or without draught Table 4 (4cm2 open area/kW of heat input) (0.01kW/kW of net heat input). Where
diverters colarifiers and other items of heat emitting
For simple calculations, the rounded up Note: Ventilation requirements equipment are sited in boiler house/plant
open area value from Tables 3 and 4 are to specified in BS 6644:2005 are therefore rooms, additional cooling air may be
be selected. for natural ventilation of boiler houses/ required to comply with current standards.
Therefore the requirement for: plant rooms in which boilers with or It may be necessary to increase
High level free opening is taken from without draught diverters are installed. ventilation rates where boilers run at near
Table 3 (2cm2 open area/kW of heat input) or full load conditions during summer
periods. Conversely, it may also cause
abnormal cooling, through winter periods.
Table 5: Mechanical ventilation flow rates.

Inlet air. Combustion Extract air. Ventilation

Difference
ventilation between inlet &

Type of Boiler
calculated
value
Required calculated Required extract air. (Inlet
inlet air
flow
value extract air minus extract
flow
to sum up
ventilation)
m3/s (b - d) • The person(s) responsible
a b c d e for designing the installation
With should have the necessary
m3/(sec1000kW) 0.0768 0.80 0.202 0.25 0.55 +/- 0.05
Draught knowledge and understanding
Diverter 3
m /(hr/kW) 2.765 2.8 0.727 0.73 2.07 +/- 0.18 of the standards and regulations
that apply
With m3/(sec1000kW) 0.707 0.75 0.347 0.35 0.4 +/- 0.05
Draught
Diverter m3/(hr/kW) 2.545 1.249 1.249 1.25 1.35 +/- 0.18 • Ventilation provisions, as
with any other aspect of the
installation, can not be
Note: contains information supplied in designed in isolation
columns b & c of this table. The inlet
air flow and the difference between it • The ventilation provision needs
and the extract air flow forms part of to ensure that the temperature
BS 6644: 2005. of the boiler house/plant room
meets the requirements of
BS 6644

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